SITUATION UPDATE: COVID-19 06/23/2020

(OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla.) As of this advisory, there are 11,028 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in Oklahoma. There are two additional deaths; one of them occurred in the past 24 hours. One in Kiowa County, a male in the 50-64 age group. One in Wagoner County, a male in the 65 and older age group. There are 371 total deaths in the state. COVID-19 testing sites are open in multiple cities in Oklahoma as a result of a cross-county, city and state health system partnership. Visit this page for updated dates and locations. For more information, visit coronavirus.health.ok.gov.

COVID-19 Oklahoma Test Results Confirmed Positive Cases 11,028 *Total Cumulative Negative Specimens to Date 284,029 *Total Cumulative Number of Specimens to Date 296,988 **Currently Hospitalized 265 Total Cumulative Hospitalizations 1,288 Deaths in the Past 24 hours 1 Total Cumulative Deaths 371 As of 2020-06-23 at 7:00 a.m. Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) is urging Oklahomans who have chosen to attend large-scale gatherings in recent weeks to seek out testing for COVID-19, even if symptoms are not present. As previously announced, OSDH encourages Oklahomans to seek COVID-19 testing both prior to attending large-scale gatherings and in the days following, and to wear a mask when physical distancing is a challenge. With active COVID-19 cases on the rise, OSDH is well positioned to support and partner with local government leaders and communities with free testing, resources, and local public health guidance. “As expected, Oklahoma’s urban areas as well as a few communities around the state are experiencing a rise in active COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations due to increased social activity and mobility. We continue to have more than 80 free testing locations across the state, and we need Oklahomans to get tested, even those without symptoms, so we can identify active cases and work together to minimize community spread,” said Interim Commissioner Lance Frye, MD. “The Stitt administration and the Legislature prioritized COVID-19 data transparency with our nationally-recognized online dashboard. These daily updates protect individuals’ personal information while equipping local leaders with the best data to make adjustments to local public health guidance if needed. Our agency is well resourced to pro-actively partner with and provide guidance to those changes.” The OSDH continues to make COVID-19 data transparent and publicly available, pointing to evidence-based guidance that allows local leaders, business owners, communities and individuals to make adjustments, and frequently reassess protocols, based on the active presence of COVID-19 locally. OSDH is committed to partnering with stakeholders on crafting recommendations for populations to take proactive measures to keep themselves safe and minimize spread. Governor Kevin Stitt first charged the agency with a mission to build its nationally recognized data dashboard, launched within a month of COVID-19 arriving in Oklahoma. At the expiration of the Catastrophic Emergency Declaration, Attorney General Mike Hunter determined the Legislature had made appropriate adjustments in State law to allow a substantial portion of the data reporting to continue. “OSDH has also deployed strike teams across 11 regions in the State to support communities when a COVID-19 hot spot has been identified,” said Commissioner Frye. “These strike teams are comprised of public health professionals, testing experts, and epidemiologists who partner with local stakeholders to increase testing capacity and provide additional infrastructure support and guidance to minimize spread.” While the rise in cases certainly calls for increased vigilance, the State’s emergency protective supplies and testing capacity remain strong. OSDH’s surge plan remains in place, and daily monitoring and communication continue should a need be identified to activate additional resources. As to contact tracing, OSDH has hired over 700 full and part-time contact tracers since March 2020 to support these efforts. Additional contact tracers are being hired and trained to expand efforts. “Personal responsibility remains key in protecting yourself and our local communities from COVID-19. We continue to encourage Oklahomans to consider wearing a mask, to routinely wash hands, and to use physical distancing measures, which are recommendations set forth by the CDC,” says Commissioner Frye, “As a society, we face a delicate balance of creating a new normal that takes into account public health, mental health, and economic risks. It will take all of us working together, as one State, to overcome the many challenges COVID-19 presents until there is a widely available vaccine.” *The total includes laboratory information provided to OSDH at the time of the report. Total counts may not reflect unique individuals. **This number is a combination of hospitalized positive cases and hospitalized persons under investigation, as reported by hospitals at the time of the report. The data reflect a change in calculation and should not be compared to prior data. ***The purpose of publishing aggregated statistical COVID-19 data through the OSDH Dashboard, the Executive Order Report, and the Weekly Epidemiology and Surveillance Report is to support the needs of the general public in receiving important and necessary information regarding the state of the health and safety of the citizens of Oklahoma. These resources may be used only for statistical purposes and may not be used in any way that would determine the identity of any reported cases. Data Source: Acute Disease Service, Oklahoma State Department of Health.